At the end of the 2007 NCAA men's gymnastics championship, a national champion will be declared for the teams and individual competitors. And while the box scores and results will provide a good overview of the meets, there are some interesting storylines that might overshadow final results.

While Penn State's chase for its 12th national title will be a major focus this weekend, another story at least equally important, is the NCAA championships returning to Rec Hall for the first time since 1991. But that wasn't the last time the Nittany Lions held the championships on their home floor. That was in 1998, when the meet was held at the much larger Bryce Jordan Center. But as the championships return to Rec Hall this season, the gymnasts should be ready for a more raucous atmosphere, with the fans right on top of the competitors in a more compact environment.

Perhaps most surprising is the fact that while the Lions have 11 team titles and have played host to the national championships seven times, only once has the team won the national title at home -- and that was way back in 1960. As a No. 3 seed this season, this is the best chance in quite some time for Penn State to win the championship in front of its home fans at Rec Hall.

As for Rec Hall, the No. 7 California Golden Bears were supposed to be making their second trip there this year. Cal was originally to compete against the Lions on March 17, but a massive snowstorm in the northeast kept the Bears stranded at home. The canceled meet, which was supposed to be Senior Night, wasn't rescheduled, and Penn State was forced to hold a special ceremony for the departing seniors at a later date. More importantly for California, the cancellation also kept the Bears from getting accustomed to the equipment at Rec Hall.

"It became the safest thing to do [to cancel]," California head coach Barry Weiner said. "This time, we can't turn around and go home. We wanted to stay in the same hotel and be at Rec Hall."

Perhaps it's only fitting that Penn State and California are in the same qualifying session. It's better late than never.

Also competing in the second session is Oklahoma, who comes to Penn State as the No. 2 seed and the two-time defending national champions. If the Sooners are able to top the competition, Oklahoma would become the first team to win three titles in a row since Nebraska capped off a run of five straight championships in 1983.

In the Sooners' history, the program has twice before won at least a share of the national title in consecutive seasons only to fall short of a three-peat. The last time the Sooners went for three in a row was in 2004 -- when Penn State took home the No. 1 ranking. While going for another team championship may be added pressure, Oklahoma coach Mark Williams thinks that his team has enough experience to not get overwhelmed this weekend.

"I feel like we have guys who've experienced it before," Williams said. "Guys have been part of a championship team."